Recently, the media has given the local food concept a lot of free press. Of course, the reasons have been motivated by a poor economy, but can it serve as a catalyst to expand the local food movement to a common practice, even after the world economy stabilizes?
During the 1940s the government encouraged people to grow food at their homes to reduce the pressures on our public food supply. Americans responded in great numbers. During its peak of popularity, 40% of our food was being produced in these Victory Gardens with over 20 million homeowners growing their own produce.
Today, vegetable seed companies are seeing sales increase by as much as 30% compared to last year’s sales over the same period. Burpee Seeds, the world’s largest seed company, agrees. This year they are marketing a new seed package called The Money Garden, where $10 worth of seed can grow you $650 worth of vegetables. All that is required is one-tenth of a sunny acre (435 square feet). The more seeds that are purchased the more the savings increase. The used tractor and tiller market is also experiencing a rise in demand according to dealers in the products.
Not just a grassroots effort – The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) has torn up a portion of its parking lot and has broken ground for a “People’s Garden” at its national headquarters in Washington, D.C. The produce will be used at local soup kitchens. The USDA has also planned for gardens at many USDA offices throughout the country. To lead by example, the Obamas will be starting a garden at the White House for the first time since Eleanor Roosevelt planted her Victory Garden in the 1940s.
Galena is starting a community garden this year and the city has approved to help bring water to the site.
John Forti, curator of historic landscape at Strawberry Banke in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, said, “A new generation of victory or peace gardens can remind us how to reduce our carbon footprint, while teaching valuable lessons in backyard gardening and home economy to American families today.”
The many articles I have read about the trend towards home gardening contain words such as “revival” and “in response to the recession,” leaving out some of the other factors that should encourage people to grow the food they eat, such as health concerns and environmental impacts. I question if this new “revival” will have the same outcome of “back to the store” as our first attempt with Victory Gardens. However, we have a multitude of reasons not to revert back today.
In the 1940s we did not experience mass food contamination from corporate growers, uncertain fuel costs, soaring obesity rates and concern about climate change. A smaller food industry existed, without a handful of agri-businesses holding the majority of market shares in our food products. Obviously, a lot has changed since then and having more control over your diet is now more appealing.
As our more senior readers could attest: it was a different world then and it is a different world now. For those reasons, this revival would logically have more staying power. But are we, the people, logical enough?
Cory Ritterbusch
http://www.revivevictorygarden.org/
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/29573538/ MSNBC article on the movement
http://www.economist.com/world/unitedstates/ Great article from The Economist
March 10, 2009 at 9:08 pm
Great minds think alike! I blogged about this today too.
Whatever the reason that people start growing some of their own, at least they are starting. And maybe some will stick with it.
Here in New Jersey, the Department of Agriculture promotes local farmers via the “Jersey Fresh” program with an ever-growing number of local farmer’s markets.(read as: shorter food chain.) We have a CSA farm here in Paramus, NJ,about 10 miles from the George Washington Bridge into NYC. So it is happening, albeit slowly.
March 16, 2009 at 2:32 pm
With the current state of biotech and large-scale farming, the idea of a modern-day “victory garden” is naive at best and insulting at worst. People who are really struggling to put food on the table don’t have time for this kind of bourgeois BS.
March 18, 2009 at 12:44 pm
Actually this is anything but “bourgeois”. This is doing for yourself, not pretentiously getting from others. It does take time–no argument there. But the time can be a little or a lot. Much can be done through cooperation and collaboration as well. You plant, I week, she’ll pick, he’ll can, etc. Victory gardens were fondly remembered by people in my childhood, who said they ate better during the war, when they worked long hours and had other privations as well. If you’re insulted, I can’t imagine why. How in the world are you injured if I grow my own food? I doubt you work more hours than I do, anyway. But, if so, come by the Hanover Farmers’ Market, or any other such market, and get some of the inexpensive and healthy food offered up. You cannot possibly be insulted then.
And it is exactly the state of “modern bio-tech farming” that is my main motivation for growing my own food. You don’t have to grow it all, but anything you do will make you want to do more.
August 16, 2009 at 8:44 am
It isn`t a matter of having anytime to make a garden, it`s making the time to do it!
If you have kids, let them help! They will learn how to help provide for themselves…
It is the old story: Teach a man to fish VS. Giving him a fish!
Talk to your church and see if they have extra land if so if they would be willing to allow a garden for those who don`t have land and everyone take turns caring for it.
I didn`t get to do the big garden I wanted this year, but I did do one! I am thankful I did. I have been out of work do to illness.
With food prices going up and my children growing I can barely afford to make ends meet.
I have already mapped out and planned what to grow for next year and where I can grow it in my yard.
Get a neighbor in on it. If you grow tomatoes, ask if they could grow green peppers and trade….
My neighbor has a peach tree, we have a pear tree, we share!
During the depression, my grandfather saved seeds from the veges and grew a big garden.
He worked 2 jobs and my grandmother worked as well. 5 kids and 5 adults in the house and only 2 people working. It was tight with only 3 bedrooms. Money was tight too.
Grandpa would hunt when he could as well to help with meat for the family..
If you want to survive in this world, you have to make up your mind to make the time. Plus it is less money out of your wallet in the long run. Save water from the gutters for the garden. That is extra money saved as well.
It`s all up to you!!!!
October 20, 2009 at 8:23 am
Starting a garden doesn’t have to be expensive either. Visit your local farmer’s market and save some seeds from the foods you eat. Tomatoes readily come back from seeds and so do most peppers, winter squash and melons. Beans and peas are easy to collect also. Buy a bag of mixed beans for soup, save 2 or 3 of each type and push them into the ground next Spring. See what comes up. Save a few mature ones for next year. Once you grow lettuce you can let it go to seed when you are done harvesting and you will have free lettuce the next year. Harvesting is the most time consuming part and remembering to visit the garden every few days to pick, then clean your veggies. But the reward is wonderful! Take the time to price what you have harvested and see what you are saving on your food bill. And remember once you have your own seeds you can trade with others for different varieties. For those new to gardening, there are plenty of websites that can help. One I recommend is http://www.ATTRA.org. Happy gardening!